Political movements join motorists' protest
A wave of protests against car import duty hikes rocked Russian regions on January 8 and 10. Protesters also called for the Putin government's resignation and for a check to rising housing and utilities prices.
Political parties and other movements joined in the car owners' protests, which predictably led to occasional arrests of the most fervent activists.
Opposition sources warn that protests will scale up in January, with political slogans added to economic slogans.
The mass meetings that flared up in Russian regions on January 8 through 10 were more than mere protests against higher import duties on foreign cars, which went into effective January 12.
In Vladivostok, more than 300 people gathered, despite minus 20 degrees C, for a meeting called by the communist party to demand that government regulate prices of staple goods and utilities and that an independent commission be established to investigate the December 21 events in Vladivostok.
On that day, a special police force, Zubr, was sent to Vladivostok from Moscow to cruelly disperse protesters against the customs duty increase. They arrested and roughed up more than 60 people.
Participants at the meeting demanded the resignations of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Maritime Territory Governor Sergei Darkin in their final statement. They also called for stripping State Duma speaker Boris Gryzlov of his Honorary Citizen of Vladivostok title "for supporting the customs duties increase and for reprisals against the city's residents."
"The local government is afraid that officials in Moscow will find out about new protests in the Far East, and therefore accuse us of cashing in on the political climate claiming that our meetings trigger greater popular unrest," Vladimir Bespalov, head of the Vladivostok KPRF committee told Kommersant. "But we will further exercise our right to protest. More people would have come, had it not been for the severe cold and concerns that the police might use batons on protesters."
Nakhodka, another major seaport in Russia's Far East not far from Vladivostok, also saw mass protests against rising customs duties on January 8 and 10, where the organisers were arrested without any explanation, but released shortly thereafter.
In Blagoveshchensk, over hundred people protested carrying signs "We won't drive Russian auto junk!" They also demanded the Putin government's resignation.
In Yekaterinburg (in the Urals), motorists organised a car race in the city's centre on January 8. The participating cars carried slogans "Down with import duties." "Why should I support AvtoVAZ?", "The government forgot us," and "I want a safe car, I want to survive!"
Participants said the race was closely watched by traffic police from all over the Sverdlovsk region.
A planned motorists' meeting in St Petersburg eventually grew into a political protest against federal and local governments: "Christmas gifts from Putin and Matviyenko - billions to friends, police batons to people."
"They hiked housing and utilities fees on January 1, as well as transport fares, so naturally all of these issues came up at the meeting," Olga Kurnosova, leader of the United Civil Front movement's St Petersburg branch, told Kommersant.
Although the meeting was sanctioned by city hall, several activists including Kurnosova were arrested. She was accused of violating the agreement by starting the meeting five minutes early.
The city of Moscow refused permission to hold protests claiming that all major sites were reserved for outdoor Christmas festivities.
Sergei Kanayev, Moscow coordinator of the Russian Federation of Auto Owners, warned that the decision would be appealed in court on Monday, and that protests would continue.
"It was only logical that duty protests grew into political meetings," said Viktor Pokhmelkin, leader of the Russian Motorists' Movement. "In December, people advanced purely economic demands, but their demands were refused and force was used against them. They had nowhere to go. Some might resign themselves, but others will keep fighting politically now."
"The range of protests has grown since December. Although each region has its unique issues, some problems are common to all. Our regional headquarters are closely monitoring the situation and are ready to fight," KPRF first deputy chairman Ivan Melnikov told Kommersant. "We'll require that police not interfere like they did in Vladivostok, but let people exercise their constitutional rights."
A special commission established at the Interior Ministry to investigate the actions of the Zubr force in Vladivostok, found no violations of any law. According to the inspectors, the special police force used no special equipment, while the protesters had been repeatedly informed that their meeting was not sanctioned.
Andrei Kozenko, Alexei Chernyshev, Anna Motorina, Konstantin Andrianov